The dollars that have been seized from the three Bangladeshis. Picture by Surajit Roy

Malda, Aug. 8: The BSF caught three Bangladeshis while they were trying to cross over into India last night. Three mobile phones, $16,000, Rs 16,000 and maps of different parts of India were seized from them.

Intelligence officials suspected that Md Dulal, Md Hasu and Md Altaf of Habiganj district who were arrested from Doulatpur border in Baisnabnagar, could be the members of the Harkat-ul- Jihadi-Islami (Huji), the Pakistan-based terrorist group with an affiliate in Bangladesh.

The arrested persons in the age group of 20-25 were handed over to police this morning, said J.S.N.D. Prasad, the commandant of the 108th Battalion of the BSF.

Additional superintendent of police of Malda Sujit Sarkar said the chief judicial magistrate here remanded the trio in police custody for nine days.

The youths had confessed during the interrogation that they had come to India two months ago “in search of work”, Sarkar said. “We are verifying their claims. Officials of the criminal investigation department are expected here tonight for interrogation.”

Central intelligence agencies have for some time been warning the Bengal government of the growing activities of the Huji. They have also said the Huji is being backed by the Pakistan-based ISI.

“Otherwise, why should the three Bangladeshis move around with dollars in Indian territory without passport? Recently, the Baisnabnagar police had recovered powerful time bombs,” a senior intelligence official said, adding the police could neither identify those who had kept the bombs, nor did they say from where these bombs come.

An intelligence agency had faxed to the district police authorities the names of some SIMI members operating from Malda. “One of them who is from Rajshahi in Bangladesh is presently stationed at Baisnabnagar area,” the official said.